Written Answers Tuesday 10 July 2007

Scottish Executive

Education

Elizabeth Smith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many classrooms in local authority primary schools were not assigned to a class of pupils or were otherwise classified as being unused in the last year for which figures are available; how many (a) P1, (b) P2 and (c) P3 classes had more than 18 pupils in that year, and whether it has projected how many extra teachers and classrooms will be required in order to reduce such classes to 18 or fewer by the end of Session 3 of the Parliament.

Fiona Hyslop: Information on the number of unused classrooms in local authority primary schools is not held centrally. In 2006, 1,510 P1, 1,378 P2 and 1,428 P3 classes had more than 18 pupils.

  We are considering in detail the numbers of teachers needed in order to reduce all P1 to P3 classes to 18 or less and allow all pre-school children access to a teacher. We have announced the first steps towards this, with funding for the employment of an additional 300 teachers and the increase of 250 training places from this August.

  We will be announcing further steps in due course, to a timetable that ensures that we can protect the quality of the teachers entering the profession and takes into account the capacity of the system to provide training places. Clearly, the most important issue is to ensure the best possible educational outcomes for our children.

  It is for local authorities to consider the detailed accommodation requirements of their schools in the light of local circumstances and declining school rolls projected for coming years.

  We have made available £40 million of additional capital resources to authorities this financial year to allow a start to be made on the accommodation requirements.

Education

Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has had talks with the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) on whether the SQA intends to introduce the theory of intelligent design to the Scottish schools science curriculum; if so, what the conclusions of these discussions have been and, if not, whether the SQA will be called on to report its position.

Maureen Watt: There have been no discussions with the SQA as SQA does not have a remit for setting out the curricula for schools. Neither are there any plans to include Intelligent Design as part of the Curriculum for Excellence review.

Housing

Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what it will do to increase availability of more affordable, socially rented accommodation in the Scottish Borders.

Nicola Sturgeon: The budget set for the 2007-08 affordable housing programme in the Scottish Borders is £7.2 million, with a target of 89 new homes, 71 for affordable rent. Decisions on affordable housing investment beyond 2008 will depend on the outcome of the spending review process later this year.

Housing

Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will increase the funding available to registered social landlords in the Scottish Borders for housing adaptations.

Nicola Sturgeon: Communities Scotland’s adaptation funding is available to registered social landlords (RSLs) for works to adapt a property to suit the changing needs of the existing, or new, tenant where those works could not reasonably have been identified when the property was originally provided.

  For the financial year 2007-08, Communities Scotland has made adaptation funding of £0.66 million available to RSLs with housing stock in the Scottish Borders area. This is an increase of over 50 per cent compared with the position in March 2005. The funding made available is in line with the funding requested by the RSLs in December 2006, through their Strategy and Development Funding Plans.

  Given that the requirement for adaptation work is demand-led, as opposed to planned, Communities Scotland recognises that it can be difficult for RSLs to accurately forecast the resources requirements for adaptation works in any given year. For this reason, all RSLs are encouraged to contact Communities Scotland’s local area office if funding requirements change. By doing this, the process of managing and approving additional funding requests can be undertaken in a controlled and coherent manner.

School Transport

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it has issued to local authorities with regard to the quality and safety of contract buses used to transport children to and from school.

Maureen Watt: Legislation on bus standards and safety is reserved to the UK Parliament. The Scottish Executive’s school transport guidance (Circular 7/2003) makes clear that it is for education authorities themselves to specify the terms and conditions of school transport contracts, including the framing of any requirements as to the quality of the buses to be used. That guidance has been supplemented by School transport: survey of good practice , published on the Scottish Executive website on 16 March 2007.

School Transport

Hugh O'Donnell (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it has issued to local authorities with regard to the provision of adult supervision on contract buses used to transport children to and from school.

Maureen Watt: The Scottish Executive’s school transport guidance (Circular 7/2003) makes clear that it is for education authorities to decide whether, on what routes and how to provide such supervision. That guidance has been supplemented by School transport: survey of good practice , published on the Scottish Executive website on 16 March 2007.

Schools

Jim Hume (South of Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will confirm the commitment to protect rural schools.

Maureen Watt: We have made clear our commitment to introduce a presumption against the closure of rural schools and shall be considering further the detailed implications of taking that forward. We do of course consider any individual council application for ministerial consent to a school closure on the basis of its particular facts and circumstances.